Justif
Ranked 7 of 24 JavaScript libraries by recommenders
A free library that brings Knuth-Plass line breaking and microtypography to web text, so justified columns look like real typesetting rather than CSS. Some note a large space in "No. 12" and slower Safari performance.
A free library that brings Knuth-Plass line breaking and microtypography to web text, so justified columns look like real typesetting rather than CSS. Some note a large space in "No. 12" and slower Safari performance.
20 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 20
- criticize it
- 0
- approval share
- 100%
Recommended in 1 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 20 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- Nobody criticizes itNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 1 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Justified text that looks like typesetting
“The columns look like typesetting rather than CSS, which is the whole thing I'd been grumbling about.”
Comment from 21 Jul 2026 in “Show HN: Justif – Knuth-Plass justification and microtypography for the web” “This is great! I was avoiding justify because it never looks good on web.”
Comment from 22 Jul 2026 in “Show HN: Justif – Knuth-Plass justification and microtypography for the web” “This is great, wish that browsers would implement a better algorithm.”
Comment from 21 Jul 2026 in “Show HN: Justif – Knuth-Plass justification and microtypography for the web” - Comment from 27 Jul 2026 in “Paywall-free News Aggregator”
- Comment from 30 Jul 2026 in “Show HN: The Federalist Papers, typeset as the 1787 newspapers they ran in”
Impressive, polished demo
“This demo feels about as good as eating a spoonful of tiramisu”
Comment from 21 Jul 2026 in “Show HN: Justif – Knuth-Plass justification and microtypography for the web” “Absolutely stunning! Thank you so much for sharing!”
Comment from 22 Jul 2026 in “Show HN: Justif – Knuth-Plass justification and microtypography for the web” “Very cool. This is near and dear to my heart.”
Comment from 23 Jul 2026 in “Show HN: Justif – Knuth-Plass justification and microtypography for the web” - Comment from 22 Jul 2026 in “Show HN: Justif – Knuth-Plass justification and microtypography for the web”
- Comment from 22 Jul 2026 in “Show HN: Justif – Knuth-Plass justification and microtypography for the web”
- Comment from 22 Jul 2026 in “Show HN: Justif – Knuth-Plass justification and microtypography for the web”
- Comment from 17 Jul 2026 in “Show HN: Justif – Knuth-Plass justification and microtypography for the web”
Useful for print-style layouts
“this is very helpful for handling the layout in the print template”
Comment from 22 Jul 2026 in “Show HN: Justif – Knuth-Plass justification and microtypography for the web” “Use justif and pretext for better typesetting and masonry columns”
Comment from 27 Jul 2026 in “Paywall-free News Aggregator”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Space in "No. 12" looks too large
“It looks as the space in "No. 12" is too large.”
Comment from 22 Jul 2026 in “Show HN: Justif – Knuth-Plass justification and microtypography for the web”
Other JavaScript libraries people recommend
The four most recommended other JavaScript libraries, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| jQuery | 111 | 48 | 70% | 12 | 16 yrs8 owners | Approved |
| Picknplace.js | 58 | 26 | 69% | 1 | — | — |
| Alpine.js | 50 | 16 | 76% | 11 | 1 yr4 owners | Approved |
| Effect (TypeScript library) | 38 | 16 | 70% | 10 | 2 yrs3 owners | Approved |
| JustifThis page | 20 | 0 | 100% | 1 | — | — |
What people said
19 of the 25 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“It perfectly implemented the system of justification I needed.”
“Use justif and pretext for better typesetting and masonry columns”
“Very cool. This is near and dear to my heart.”
“Amazing work! This is beautiful!”
“Absolutely stunning! Thank you so much for sharing!”
“this is very helpful for handling the layout in the print template”
“It looks as the space in "No. 12" is too large.”
“This is great! I was avoiding justify because it never looks good on web.”
“I hope this project is a demonstration of that.”
“Wow, I'm seriously impressed!”
“A most welcome addition to a webmaster’s toolkit”
“this demo blew me away! Fantastic!”
“the demo is great on my phone”
“In general it performs well enough I think, though Safari is a little slower than other platforms.”
“The columns look like typesetting rather than CSS, which is the whole thing I'd been grumbling about.”
“Questions, from someone who wants this to work”
“This demo feels about as good as eating a spoonful of tiramisu”
“This is great, wish that browsers would implement a better algorithm.”
“Loved the demo and controls”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.